The Middle of Nowhere
by Neko-Mei
Summary: The bladebreakers get sent on a camping trip and are stuck you guessed it in the middle of nowhere :P Yaoi TyKa and implied MaRa I actually updated: Chapter 5
1. Chapter One

**Mei****:** _Due to lack of inspiration on my other ficcys, I'm writing this one!_

**Tyson: **_That's useful. Shouldn't you be working on you're other fics? The ones that haven't been updated in a long time? -.-U_

**Mei****: **_Like I said – Lack of inspiration.__ Don't worry, I'll update them someday (hopefully soon) but right now, I think I'll just write this one! It's an idea that's been bugging me for a while. The rating may go up… depending on whether or not I am able to write that well O.o_

**::Disclaimer::**Aouni does not own beyblade, or any of its characters.

**--Warning--** This story contains yaoi (boy/boy) if you don't like it, then you don't have to read it. I don't want any flames about how you hate yaoi -.-;; (feel free to flame me on my grammar – I know it sucks -.-U)

**Destiny: **_Don't worry, it is the duty of us muses to force – er, remind, the authoress to update, and that is exactly what we shall do!_

**Mei****: **_I really don't like the way you said that…_

* * *

**_The Middle of Nowhere_**

_--Chapter One—_

_(-Tyson's POV-)_

Man, I was excited! Why shouldn't I be? Mr. Dickenson was sending the whole team camping! Even if it was a sort of training camp, it was still going to be fun. I hadn't been camping since two years ago, when we met Antonio after the Asian Tournament. It wasn't so much fun then, because we were there to practice our beyblading – even though that is what we are doing this time, I just know it'll be better!

For one thing, Antonio's not there.

I can tell Max is just as excited as I am, he's bouncing up and down on his seat. Maybe the guy's just loaded on sugar, but he still seems pretty happy. Ray's happy to be getting outdoors too, he says it's always good to get out and around. He's sitting across from us, reading a book. I don't understand how he can read on the bus and not get car-sick, but I sure can't.

Kenny and Hilary are sitting behind us. Kenny's trying to do some research based on our most recent battles, but he's not getting very far because Hil keeps bugging him with questions. She still doesn't understand the game, even after watching us play it for a year! Man, that girl is weird. But it's still nice to have her along, she's the only one I can talk to about my… uh… crush.

Speaking of that, the very person I'm crushing on is sitting a couple seats behind us in the back of the bus, as usual. He doesn't like to socialize with us – or anyone for that matter. Yes, you heard right, _he_. Haha, I bet you didn't know that Tyson Kinomiya, the World Champion Beyblader, had a thing for _guys_, did you? I bet I just broke a million fangirls hearts.

It doesn't matter, he'll never return my feelings. Sometimes I wonder if he even _has_ feelings, but he does, I know he does. I've seen it. Sometimes, if I look really hard, I can catch a flash of emotion behind those burgundy eyes, and there are some rare occasions when I've seen more than just a flash.

Like that day on the frozen lake, when he was drowning. I'll never forget that. He didn't think we would help him. He didn't think that _I_ would help him. It hurts, to know that he thought I'd abandon him. I remember the look of despair when he had lost, lost with the one thing he had been sure was perfection. I remember the look of confusion, when we reached out to help him, wondering why we would want to save him. I also remember the look of realization, almost disbelieving, when he realized that we did care, and we would help him.

I'll never forget that day, when I almost lost him. I'll also never forget when we won the World Championships for the first time in Russia. It was the first time I'd seen him crack a true smile. It brightened up those crimson eyes of his and he didn't look so dark and cold. I have a picture of that – the whole team; Max and I are holding up the trophy, Ray is standing behind Max, and Kenny is holding his laptop (as always) and he's behind me, with that beautiful smile.

I bet you've probably figured out who I've fallen for by now, and I bet you're probably laughing your head off. Well, I can't blame you. Hilary had about the same reaction when I told her I loved Kai – until she saw how serious I was. I can't talk though, because when she told me that she had a crush on the Chief moments later, I was laughing even harder than she had.

Ever since then we've had little private discussions about our "love lifes", if you can call them that. I feel like a real girl when I gush about our Captain to her – but I can't help it. If I didn't tell anyone I would explode, or die, or something. What really bugs me though, is that whenever we go off alone, the others (Ray and Max mostly – sometimes Dizzy) make lewd comments about what we do while we're alone. They seem to think Hil and I have a thing for each other.

It's annoying, but Hilary thinks we can get back at them. She says she's been given the impression that Max and Ray are… a little more than just friends. If we could just get some proof it would be the perfect blackmail! That's why I'm currently in a very deep and… um, rather perverted, discussion with Max about who's the sexiest beyblader in history. Unfortunatley, we haven't even touched down near our team yet, because we're still on the girls of beyblade.

"Emily!" Max was saying, "She's got brains _and_ looks! What do you say to that, Tyson?"

"Uh… what about Queen?" I said lamely.

"That nasty parts-hunter? What's so great about her?" asked Max, chuckling.

I gulped, it was now or never, "Well, you know, there aren't many female bladers to go by, Max… um, maybe we should try both genders?"

Max blushed. Ah ha! I've hit a nerve, I see, "Uh… well, I guess so…"

I grinned mischieviously, "I know who the best looking male beyblader around is!" I said cheerfully.

Max was interested now, "Oh? And who might that be?"

_Kai_, I though silently, feeling my cheeks heat up slightly, but instead I put on my typical goofy grin and shouted, "ME!"

"You?" Max snorted, "Ray looks – I mean, no, ah…" his voice trailed off and he turned a very deep shade of red.

Ha! I had him now! "Oh, Maxie, what's this about Ray?" I asked, grinning evilly.

The blonde suddenly became very interested in his shoes, "Uh, nothing," he mumbled, "I meant to say something else…"

Fortunatley for Max, he was saved from my further interrogation when the bus screeched to a halt.

"Alright mates," said the driver opening the door, "This be your stop!" he gestured to the endless span of woodland around us. My jaw dropped in disbelief.

"Aw man," I groaned, "Don't tell me Mr. Dickenson's dropped us off in the middle of nowhere _again_!"

"I don't have time for you're whining, kiddies," said the driver impatiently, waving us towards the door, "Whine to you're guide when you meet'em."

"We have a guide?" asked Ray, "That doesn't sound so bad."

We all hopped of the bus, the driver followed, dumping our luggage after us before driving off.

Hilary looked around worriedly, "So where's this guide?"

Kenny opened up his laptop, "Dizzy, is this the correct location?"

The sarcastic bit-beast wasn't very helpful, I tell you, sometimes I just want to smash that computer, "Well, I don't know – It looks just like any other place in middle of the woods to me, Chief!"

"Then what are we supposed to do?" cried Hilary, Max and Kenny looked equally panicked, and I had to admit I was worried too.

Kai sighed and leaned against a tree, "Calm down."

Somehow, his voice had just that effect on me. I was calming down, although I had no idea why. The others just stared at him in disbelief.

"But Kai, how are we supposed to calm down?" asked Max, looking around fearfully.

"Yeah, it'll be getting dark soon," whimpered Kenny.

"And we're in the middle of nowhere!" shrieked Hilary.

"Kai's right," said Ray softly, "You guys need to take it easy. Do you really think Mr. Dickenson would just leave us out here?

We all stopped to let Ray's words sink in. It was true. We were over-reacting.

"The guide's probably on his way," Ray continued reassuringly.

"Or is he?" hissed a low, raspy voice.

* * *

**Mei****: **_Oh my god!__ I wrote a cliffie. Me doesn't do that much, but it's your unlucky day. Me was feeling particularly evil today!_

**Tyson: **_You're evil everyday -.-;;_

**Ray: **_Are you actually going to be _nice_ to me in this fic? _::gasps::

**Mei****: **_I don't know, we'll see. I might give you a break, considering how mean I am to you and Max in _Shattered Glass_._

**Kai:**_You're__ mean to all of us._****

**Mei****: **_I know! And I love it! ;)_

**Destiny: **_Review peoples! Mei won't update unless you do!_

**Tyson: **_Yeah,__ and reviewers get candy from Maxie's sugar stash! As usual. ;)_

**Max: **_Only if I haven't eaten it all!_::hyperactive grin::


	2. Chapter Two

**Mei:**_Wow!__ People really seem to like this story! That's the most reviews I've ever gotten for a single chappie! _::goes all teary–eyed:: _ You like me! You really like me!!_

**Destiny: **_Cut it out with the melodramatics and write the fic already -.-;;_

**::Disclaimer::** Aouni does not own beyblade, she doesn't even own _a_ beyblade.

**--Warning—**(see previous chapter)

**Mei****: **_Aaaaaaaaahhhhhh__!!__ I hate writing in first person! Tis so confusing! _

**Tyson: **_So why did you write it in first person anyway?_

**Mei****: **_I don't know! It was originally in third person, but then I couldn't get your thoughts in very well, and thoughts are always important, so I had to switch it, and that got your thoughts in nicely, but, now my grammar is even worse than it was before!!_

**Tyson: **_O.o__ Woah…__Brea__the girl! __Brea__the._

**Mei****: **_It's__ official – I hate writing first person. -.-;; Anywho – this ficcy is tyka! (might seem a little tyhil-ish, but it's not. I can't stand that pairing -.-;;)_

* * *

**_The Middle of Nowhere_**

_--Chapter Two—_

_ (-Kai's __PO__V-)_

"The guide's probably on his way," Ray was saying.

"Or is he?"

My teammates nearly jumped out of their skins. I swear, they are way too paranoid. I turned glanced in the general direction of the voice to see a frail old woman, with wispy silver hair, clutching an old walking stick with a thin, knarled hand.

"Ah, such youthful exuberance. It has been a while since I have seen children," she flashed us a creepy smile. It was official – I did not like this woman.

The others were apparently still freaked out by her sudden appearance and mysterious words, but they weren't quite as afraid, seeing as she was just an old lady. I didn't trust her though.

"Uh, do you know where our guide is?" asked Max cautiously.

"Yes, yes, I do. I am your guide," her smile grew wider, sending shivers up my spine.

"Oh," said Ray, "I guess we're supposed to follow you then?"

"Hmm? Yes, yes, my pretties. Follow me, " she turned around and hobbled into the woods.

Kenny shot Ray a terrified look, but Ray just shrugged and followed the old woman. Max chuckled at the Chief's whimpering and dragged him into the forest after Ray. Tyson and Hilary exchanged wide-eyed glances before following the others, whispering softly to each other as they did so. I was hit by a pang of jealousy as I watched them go.

Seeing her with Tyson… hurts. Those two have been spending a lot of time together. It's obvious that they like each other, they're always exchanging whispers and having private conversations and it makes me feel… well, I don't know. I've never been very good with emotions. I don't even know if what I feel for Tyson is actually love, I mean, my grandfather never loved me and I can't remember my parents. I don't know what love is like.

Maybe all I feel for Tyson is just a very strong friendship, I mean, after all, he's been a great friend, more than I deserve – but then, I've never had friends before. How am I supposed to know the difference? Either way, it doesn't matter. Like I said, it is obvious he likes Hilary. Maybe that's best, Hilary is a better match for Tyson. For one thing she's a girl, and for another she's easier to deal with. Tyson doesn't need to be tied down by me. I'm too high-maintenance and I have too many emotional problems – I would just be a burden.

Besides, I'm not sure if it really is love. I don't want to think about it.

We've been following this strange old woman for a few minutes, and Tyson is already complaining. He says his feet hurt. Typical. Kenny is still deathly afraid of her, I bet he's thought up some odd conspiracy theory about how she has Mr. Dickenson locked in a closet somewhere and right now she is leading us to her doom. That kid gives himself nightmares all the time, it's no wonder he never sleeps. Ray and Max are flirting away, completely oblivious to the rest of the world. Yes, they're together – I know because last week I caught them… well, they should lock their door at any rate. Not that it bothered me, I've seen worse.

"Ah, dearies, this is it." Dearies, hn. Maybe she's just senile. She sure seems a little out of it.

"So this is where we set up the tents?" asks Ray. I see him and Max are finally out of la-la land.

She flashes us a crooked smile, "Yes my child. My cabin is right up there," she pauses and gestures to a trail leading up a hill to our north.

"Hey!" whines Tyson, "How come we don't get a cabin?" He always finds something to complain about… it's… cute. Cute? How is that cute? It's supposed to be annoying! I need to get more sleep, the lack of it has addled my brain.

"Ah, if you really want you can sleep with me, child,"(_AN: Not like that. -.-;; Hentai_.)the old lady replies smiling at Tyson. His eyes widen – making him look even cuter – and he backs away.

"Uh, no, that's fine. I'll take the tent."

"Suit yourself, my dear. The restrooms are to your east," she gestures to another pathway leading to the woods, "Just follow that path," she gives a mysterious smile, causing Kenny to whimper fearfully and duck behind Max.

"Okay…" Ray says slowly, "Well, I'm sure we can set the tents up on our own. Thanks for your time."

The guide gives a small omniscient smile, "No trouble, my children. It was… a pleasure," she turns and walks off to the cabin, leaving the whole team severely creeped out.

"So, uh, why don't we set up the tents?" Max says brightly, after awhile. I think he's trying to lighten the mood. It works, the others all hurry to set up the tents. I suppose they forgot all about the fire and how cold it gets at night. Ah, well, it gives me a reason to wander off… And get away from Tyson and Hilary.

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_(-Tyson's __PO__V-)_

Man, leave it to Mr. Dickenson to entrust us in the care of a wacked out old lady for a week. That woman gives me the creeps. I think she freaked out the others too. Kai was the only one who seemed unfazed, but then, nothing ever seems to get to Kai. It's one of the many reasons I admire him.

I'm glad she's gone for now, it's made me relax a bit even though it hasn't done the same for Kenny. He's still clinging to Dizzy for dear life. We've set the tents up now – Kai didn't help, he disappeared. Ray thinks he probably went off to get firewood. I wish he didn't go alone, now I'm worried about him. I shouldn't be, Kai can take care of himself… but I still worry. Hilary knows it.

"Hey," she pokes me.

"What?"

"You're not worried that little old lady will jump Kai in the woods _are_ you?" she asks, attempting to cheer me up with some jokes.

I stare at her in disbelief, "No! Of course not, Kai can handle some little old lady," but she's only made me worry even more. What if that creepy old woman _does_ follow Kai? I know the whole prospect is silly, but I can't help myself.

"There's only three tents," Max points out suddenly, distracting me. He's right, that means there'll be two of us to a tent.

Kenny seems to have calmed down a little, "We should probably decide who the tent partners are then," he said softly.

I wondered who I'd end up with. If Hilary's hunch was correct (and I think it is) then Max and Ray will probably snag themselves a tent together, somehow. That leaves me with either Hilary, the Chief or…

"Tyson can share a tent with Kai!"

I nearly jumped out of my skin at Hilary's words. What did she think she was doing? I can't share a tent with Kai! I have a _crush_ on him! Hilary's always coming up with these hair-brained schemes to get me "closer" to our captain, and none of them are very helpful. In fact, this is one of the worst ideas she's ever come up with.

I glared at her, trying to convey that she was _not_ helping, but she didn't get it. So, I took a different approach.

"Well, Hilary can share a tent with _Kenny_!" I snapped. Her eyes widened, and she shook her head slightly. There, she finally gets it now.

Suddenly Hil's eyes narrowed again, "Fine," she said coolly.

"Fine!" I shouted. We stood there glaring daggers for a good five or ten minutes, aware that the others were staring at us oddly.

After a while Ray said, "I guess that leaves me with Max," he blushed slightly as Max gave an excited grin. I didn't even want to know that those two were going to spend their nights doing.

"Er… right then," said Kenny, casting odd looks between me and Hilary, "I suppose we should move our things into the tent before it starts to rain or something."

"Good idea Chief!" said Max cheerfully.

Hilary and I gave up our glaring competition. I went over and dragged my stuff to our tent… May as well drag Kai's stuff with me too. Oh man, what am I going to do? I can't be so close to him, I'll go nuts! Stupid Hilary. Thinks she knows everything. I unzipped the tent and threw the bags in. Only when they landed with a loud thud, did I think of the possibility that Kai might have something _fragile_ packed.

Well wasn't my day going great? When Kai gets back he's going to kill me. I glanced back at the woods anxiously – he _would_ come back, wouldn't he?

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_(-Kai's POV-)_

I can't believe I'm lost. I _nev__er_ get lost. I guess it's my own fault for not following the trail, but still… I was always good with directions! I came from that way, I know because it has the same huge tree stump covered in moss. So logically, if I go back that way, I should find the others – but no, it's a labyrinth. Without the stone walls and the minotaur. Or maybe there is a minotaur?

I haven't panicked yet; I was trained not to panic and to focus on my goal… What was my goal again? Oh, right. Getting back to the campsite. I'm even starting to forget things! I don't forget things, especially not simple things like that. What's wrong with me? I seem to be going in circles, I keep passing the same tree stump over and over again, despite the fact that I haven't turned once. It's starting to creep me out.

Maybe if I walk in the opposite direction from where I came I'll get somewhere. It worked before. I turn around leaving the stump far behind me. At least the scenery is changing now – the trees aren't so green anymore. They're red and orange, like in autumn. That's possible; it's near the end of August.

An odd looking tree catches my attention. It casts a bigger shadow than the others… a sort of square shadow. I look up. A treehouse. Figures.

Well, I can't be too far from civilization if there's a treehouse – albeit, a very abandoned looking treehouse. It's quite high up, I wouldn't like to fall from it. A ladder is nailed into the trunk, but most of the nails are so old and worn that I wouldn't trust the ladder anyway. It leads up to a doorway. There's no door, but the rusty hinges that remain suggest there may have been at one point in time. It's overgrown in leaves and the wood is likely rotting away.

I wonder why anyone would build a treehouse in the middle of nowhere.

"Lost, my dear?"

I spin around – it's that crazy old hag again. I'm about to retort rather coldly, that I am _not_ lost. But when I think about it, that might not be such a good idea, considering I have no idea where I am.

When I don't answer the old lady flashes a hideous smile, "That treehouse was built by my grandfather," she says with an air of pride. I see, so it is old then. I wasn't really in the mood for one of those "back in the when I was your age" stories that old people like to tell so much, but it didn't look like I had much of a choice.

"My mother used to come and play in these woods everyday – with her brother, my uncle."

"That's nice," I said coldly.

The old woman ignored me – or maybe she hadn't even heard me, "They always used to climb the trees. My grandfather found it quite amusing, but my grandmother did not. She was always afraid that they might fall from the trees. My grandfather and his children ignored her worries, and they built this treehouse."

I sighed, this was going nowhere, "Does your story have a point?"

She gave me an eerie smile, "Patience, young one."

Young one? Well, I suppose I am a great deal younger than she is but that doesn't give her license to talk to me like I am a toddler. She really is senile.

"My mother and my uncle loved the tree house dearly – and for years they played in it happily. Until, one stormy night, my uncle decided to camp out in the treehouse. Unfortunatley, it was struck by lightning and he was killed."

Great. I could see where this was going, "If this is a silly ghost story, you can forget it, because I'm not interested."

She glared at me, "This is not silly – it is true, and you would do well to respect your elders."

That hit a nerve. My own grandfather had once said something along the same lines. He'd called me other things, worthless, pitiful, spoilt, useless, arrogant and self-centered – they all hurt, but that one had hurt a lot, because I knew it wasn't true. I had respected him, at the time. I wasn't sure if I did anymore… not after everything he'd done.

I was jolted out of my brooding by the realization that the old lady had started talking again – and had been talking for quite some time, "As an adult, my mother returned to the site of their deaths – this treehouse – almost every day."

Their deaths? Someone else had died? I was surprised I even cared that I had missed that part of the story.

"She brought me to see it once, when I was a little girl. I remember that day. It was the first time anyone had cimbed the treehouse since my grandmother and my uncle had died," she glanced at me, "You are still paying attention aren't you, child?"

"Hn." I can't say the story was very interesting, but somehow I was still listening.

"She got to the nineth rung of the ladder and fell. That was the day she died."

I couldn't think of anything to say to that. I've never been very sociable. So I said nothing.

"Since then, no one has climbed this treehouse."

I glanced up at the rusty nails and rotting planks and nearly snorted, _I wonder why_, I thought sarcastically.

"You and the other children would do well to stay away from it," she suddenly leaned in very close to me – too close for comfort, "You must not go in the treehouse."

I backed away, "Right…"

The woman smiled, "Ah, we must be getting back to the camp, yes child?"

"Yeah…" I replied slowly.

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_(-Tyson's POV-)_

Kai didn't come back until sometime that evening. _After_ it got dark. Man, I was worried sick about the guy! What did he think he was doing? Currently the two of us were sitting in our tent. I had forgotten feeling uncomfortable and was focused on yelling at him.

"You didn't even tell us where you were going," I complained, trying to ignore the voice in the back of my head that told me I sounded like his mother, "You had me – us worried sick!" I nearly clapped my hand over my mouth at that slip up.

"Hn."

I pouted, "You could at least say you're sorry."

"Go to sleep Tyson."

I sighed, this was going to be one long week.

* * *

**Mei****: **_Don't__ worry – it's not a horror story. No ghosts, sorry ;) The treehouse is hardly even in it. I just had to add that part because it's important later... And because I like freaking Kai out MUAHAHAHA!!__Anywho__ - This chapter sucked. I'm not very good at first person -.-;; Next chappie will be better! At least, I hope so… _

**Reviews:** (Thank you for reviewing! You peoples are so kind, =) it's really encouraging)

**Kurama&Karasus**** Daughter – **I hope it will be a good ficcy too… but that only works if my lazy muses do their job -.-;;

**Yaoi**** Angel –** No, I'm an uke Kai girl =) I love uke Kai and always will love uke Kai. Besides, Tyson is so hot when he's dominant, ne? ;) But uh… they both wear pants… I don't really like to dress either one up as a girl – unless it's for the sake of humour =)

**Kiina**** – **Yep, there's more now (= Hope you like this chappie as much as the last one… Doing Kai's POV is hard -.-;;

**Genbo**** – **Really? Well, what happens is Tyson- ::muse claps hand over her mouth:: Mmmmphhht!

Destiny: You're not supposed to tell them! You're supposed to _update_!

Mei: Oh… Yes, me will try to update soon =)

**Fla****mable****-Devil – **Thank yous! =) Me ish very happy you likes it! Lots of people seem to find this interesting O.o

Tyson: That's a _good thing ::_says very slowly as if talking to a chibi::

Mei: It is? YAY! Me ish glad you think it's interesting! =)

**Techno Ranma – **=) Me has continued now! Hope you like this chappie too =) I don't like this chappie -.-;;

**Twinsisters**** of Heaven and Hell – **My grammar is not bad? YAY! Me is glad you likes it ::nods:: =) Nah, don't worry… I don't do cliffies much.

**Soul Clara – **I love Tyson/Kai too! =) …They're the most kawaii couple, ne? Me has updated now! Do you like this chappie? I don't like it… I like the first one better.

**Maxie's**** Cute – **Cake! And muffins! Tis yummy…Thank you! Yeah, I don't like fics where they bash Hilary, I mean, what's wrong with Hilary? She's the only female main character… Ah, maybe that's why. But I still like her.

**Fireie**** Gurl – ::**blushes:: Thank you! I didn't think it was that good – I'm bad at first person writing. But if you like it, I'm not complaining =)

**Glay**** – **::blushes:: I don't deserve all that praise, really, I'm not that good - ::gets smacked by her muses:: x.x

Destiny: Mei is really really happy that you like her story.

Tyson: Yeah, and she'd like to thank you for saying so many nice things about it =)

Kai: And she is _not_ going to complain again the next time someone complements her. -.-;;

**Crimson – **No, I didn't change it too long ago (this actually the first story I posted while being called Mei Li) =) I like it better than my last name. I'm glad you like this story! Me is liking writing it… well, except for the third chapter ::strangles third chapter:: Die you stupid chappie that just won't come out right!! -.-;; I updated now! Does that mean you'll update too? Please? =)

**Mei****: **_Yay__!__ So many people liked my story! And they all said such nice things. Thank yous! You people are the best! =)_

**Tyson: **_That means you're gonna update soon, ne?_

**Mei****: **_Uh… well…__ That depends…_

**Kai: **_Depends on what?___

**Mei****: **::gets dark look:: _The stupid third chapter!! It's driving me nuts! I can't write it the way I want to!! -.-;;_

**Tyson: **_Oh boy.__ -.-U Don't worry – we'll get her to update. Until then – review! And have a cornchip ::_holds out bag of cornchips to reviewers::


	3. Chapter Three

**Mei: **_Hey!__ I finally updated this! Thanks for being so patient guys. You have no idea how many times I ended up re-writing this chapter -.-;; so I finally switched to third-person instead of first and… It was done. I feel really stupid now. I might edit the first two chapters and put them in third person too, but I think my laziness will get the better of me and I'll end up leaving them the way they are…_

**::Disclaimer::** Me no own beyblade. If I did then I would be very rich – and I'm not -.-;;

**--Warning--**(see previous chapters) – There's also two kinda make-out scenes in this chapter. O.o I didn't think they warranted a rating change – but they're in italics, so if you don't want to read it, you don't have to.

* * *

**_The Middle of Nowhere_**

_Chapter Three_

* * *

_Tyson woke up to a heavy weight on his chest. He opened his eyes, squinting slightly at the sunlight, which filtered through the orange walls of the tent. After his eyes adjusted, he opened them wider and found himself inches away from a pair of impossibly beautiful crimson pools…_

_"Wake up sleepyhead," the owner whispered huskily, leaning closer so that they were nose to nose._

_"Uh, Kai? What are you doing?"_

_The said teenager smiled, his eyes trailing down the younger boy's torso. His tongue darted out, licking his soft pink lips hungrily. It was then that Tyson realized he didn't have a shirt on._

But I swear I was wearing one when I went to sleep,_ he thought. Unless... _Kai_ had taken his shirt off…_

_One of Kai's hands found their way into Tyson's midnight blue hair, pulling it free from the ribbon in which it was bound. The other trailed his hand down the smaller boy's chest, and past, tracing inane shapes along the sides of his thighs and making him moan with pleasure._

_"Mmm… Tyson," he breathed, nuzzling into the other's chest. Tyson felt his breath catch in his throat as Kai whispered his name again._

_"Tyson…" he said playfully. His tone suddenly grew more serious, "Tyson."_

"Tyson!"

The world champion's eyes snapped open at Kai's voice, just seconds before the older boy hit him over the head with a pillow. Pain registered briefly in the world champion's disoriented thoughts and he wondered faintly how much strength it took to make a _soft_ object _hurt_ so much.

"Wake up!" snapped Kai impatiently. Due to his height, the older boy was unable to stand in the tent without have to bend over like a hunchback, so he was kneeling beside Tyson with the murderous pillow lying in his lap. He was already fully dressed, and looked like he had been awake for quite awhile.

Tyson felt the heat rising to his cheeks as he sat upright. What if he'd been moaning in his sleep? What if Kai had _heard_ him? He turned away from his captain, making sure to avoid all eye contact with the older boy as he mumbled about how he was awake already.

Kai frowned, "Whatever, just get ready. Training starts in…" he paused to check his watch, "Two minutes."

"WHAT?" Tyson's eyes bulged out of his head as he turned to look at Kai in shock, completely forgetting his embarrassment, "Two minutes?! I haven't even had breakfast yet!"

"You missed breakfast," came the cold response. Tyson watched as the elder teen turned around and crawled towards the exit of the tent, "Now hurry up and get dressed."

"You could have woken me up sooner," Tyson grumbled, but Kai had already left the tent. The bluenette sighed, and changed into his clothes before crawling out of the tent himself.

He was immediately nose-to-nose with their wrinkled old camp guide, "You're late!" she cried happily.

Instinctively, the midnight-haired teen backed away, "Uh yeah… Sorry about that."

"Oh no!" the old woman gave the same creepy smile that she always seemed to wear, "Do not be sorry! It is good to see that some of today's generations are not dragged down by the expectations of modern times."

"Huh?"

"I am saying, my child, that it is _good_ that you are late! You should be late _all_ the time! It builds character – like spinach." Even though he couldn't see his crush, Tyson could imagine perfectly Kai's reaction to the words "be late all the time". Just thinking of the face his captain would make caused him to laugh.

"Ah, see? It is good to be late."

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The lake sparkled in the sunlight, the calm tranquility broken by the occasional rough splashes and cheerful laughter. Training was over and the group had gone to a nearby lake to relax. Tyson and Max were chasing each other around in the lake, splashing each other in a vicious water war, while Hilary practiced diving from a high rock, hoping to catch Kenny's attention (but was failing miserably).

Ray was sitting near the edge of the lake in his swimming trunks _watching_ the others because he adamantly refused to go into the water, saying that it would make a mess of his precious hair. Kenny was sitting far from the water's edge at a picnic, complaining about how he _hated_ camping.

And Kai? Kai was sitting beside Kenny, listening to the "brainiac" complain about how much he hated camping, but secretly wishing that he had remembered to bring some swimming gear so that he wouldn't have to sit there and listen to the Chief (Kenny couldn't swim).

What was worse, the eldest Bladebreaker could feel himself nodding off. He'd gotten very little sleep the previous night, partially due to Tyson's loud, obnoxious snoring and partially because he found it nearly impossible sleep soundly while lying so close to his object of affection.

Kai was tired and grumpy and Kenny was getting on his nerves. He was sure that if the small bespectacled boy made one more comment about how bored he was without his laptop – as he'd been forced to leave Dizzy in his tent when they went to the lake – he would end up doing something stupid and most likely regret it. Like picking the Chief up and tossing him in deepest part of the lake for a "crash course" in swimming.

_Tyson climbed out of the water; laughing so hard that his sides ached. Max had given up on chasing him, the blonde was too tired to keep up with his friend – he'd argued that he and Ray hadn't gotten much sleep last night. Tyson had rolled his eyes. He found himself glancing up the shore at his captain, head bowed wearily from having to listen to the small boy beside him chatter pessimistically for nearly an hour._

_Tyson smirked, if Max and Ray could have their fun, then why shouldn't he? He strolled on over to wear Kai was sitting and linked his arm casually around the older teen's. Kai looked up at him questioningly, but made no attempt to remove his arm from Tyson's._

_The younger boy smiled seductively, "Come with me…"_

_Through this time, Kenny hadn't stopped whining, and Tyson doubted that he'd notice when they were gone. The poor Chief was moaning about his fears now – being attacked by a bear in the middle of the night seemed to be high on his paranoia list, along with being kidnapped by a psychotic serial killer._

_"Well?" asked the world champion lowering his voice to a slow, sexy whisper and tugging on Kai's arm impatiently, "Are you gonna come with me… or not?"_

_Kai stood up numbly and Tyson smiled, pulling the stoic boy away from the bench and farther away from their teammates. As soon as they were out of eye's sight, the younger boy shoved his captain up against a tree, breathing harshly as he leaned in close to him._

_"Do you know what I want to do to you?"_

_Kai said nothing, his breath had hitched in his throat his mind faintly realizing the distance between him and Tyson was slowly growing smaller._

_"Do you know…" Tyson's voice softened, and his hands trailed up to cup Kai's thin, painted cheeks, "How much I _want_ you?" Before Kai could respond, the younger boy's hands had gripped his head firmly, pulling him in for a rough, bruising kiss. He groaned as the younger boy pressed his chest against his. His slender, pale hands gripped Tyson's shoulders and pulled him closer._

_Eventually Tyson pulled away, pulling on Kai's lower lip with his teeth as he did so and smiling lustily through dark, stormy eyes._

_"Kai…" he whispered hoarsely, "I want you… I _need_ you… Say you're mine."_

_"I'm yours," Kai replied dazedly, his breath catching in his throat as he felt Tyson's hand holding his chin in place._

_The younger teen pressed his forehead up against the other boy's, "Again," he demanded softly._

_Kai moaned, "I'm yours…"_

_Tyson smiled, "Wake up Kai…" but his voice no longer sounded like Tyson, it sounded like… Max?_

"Kai! You're dreaming. Earth to Kai!"

Scarlet eyes slowly opened, blinking up at bright blue ones, framed by a mop of messy blonde hair.

Somewhere in the background Kai heard Ray snicker, "It's about time you woke up. Did you have a _nice_ dream?"

Max smiled as Kai sat up, taking in his surroundings. Kenny had left to go closer to the shoreline, sitting in Ray's former spot near the lake and sulking as Tyson and Hilary – who were still in the lake – argued over something to do with whether fishing was any fun.

Tyson's hair was dripping wet, and the dark strands clung to his cheeks and his tanned shoulders. He looked gorgeous… Unfortunately, Kai wasn't given much time to stare because Max jolted him out of his daydreaming once again.

"So… Who exactly do you belong to, Kai?"

"What?" asked the elder boy groggily turning to look up at the American and his boyfriend.

"You were moaning in your sleep about how you belonged to someone," explained Max casually, as if this sort of thing happened everyday, "Who was it?"

Kai's cheeks turned a deep shade of pink, and he looked away trying to find something interesting in the sky for him to stare at.

"You know Kai," said Ray, grinning cheekily, "I never took you for the submissive type…"

The Russian boy growled, "Shut. Up." He silently cursed himself for falling asleep. At least Tyson hadn't heard him… had he?

"Come on Kai…" whined Max, "Please?"

"Face it," said Ray smugly, "We'll never leave you alone until you tell us." Kai glared at the neko-jin. The guy was enjoying this! He narrowed his eyes stubbornly and continued his search of the sky. In the distance, he could hear Tyson laughing, and Kenny screaming, "No! Don't do it! I can't swim!" followed by a loud splash and a ton of giggles from Hilary. Then Tyson was saying, "See Chief? It wasn't that hard!"

"Kai!" Max complained, "Are you even listening to me?"

"Look, old sourpuss, if you _don't_ tell us who it is, then, well…" Ray grinned evilly, "We can always mention this little incident to the others, and they can help us pester you!"

His captain glowered, "You wouldn't _dare_."

The Chinese teen laughed, "Oh trust me, I would."

Kai sighed, leaning his head down on the table tiredly, "Fine," he gave in bracing himself to be laughed at, "It's… Tyson," he mumbled.

"It's who?" asked Max.

Kai gritted his teeth, "You heard me," his voice sank dangerously low.

"I heard Mr. Dickenson…" Ray replied thoughtfully, "But I don't think that's what he meant…"

"I said, Tyson!" snapped Kai, "TYSON!"

Over at the lake the blue-haired boy in question looked upon hearing his name, "Huh? Kai? Did I do something?"

Ray and Max watched in amusement as their captain's eyes widened and his cheeks reddened for the second time that day, "N-no. I wasn't talking to you! Mind your own business, baka."

Tyson looked hurt, but Kai didn't see that – he was too busy staring up at the clouds again. Ray and Max saw it though.

"Man that is _not_ the way to win a guy's affection."

"What are you on about now?" snarled Kai.

"You know," said Max in a matter-of-fact way, "Insulting him, telling him to shut up and mind his own business? That doesn't score any points."

"Hn."

Ray sighed, and he and Max sat on either side of Kai, each grabbing one of their captain's arms to prevent his escape.

Kai sent them both murderous looks, "Let go."

"No, Kai," said Ray calmly, "We're going to _help_ you. Just trust us; we'll have you and Ty together in no time!"

The elder teen's eyes widened, "Ah, no you won't."

"We will! We know all about matchmaking! We even set Kenny and Emily up – how about that, huh?" Max puffed out his chest proudly, "We are matchmaking geniuses!"

"_No_."

Ray smirked, "Come on Kai – the only cure for those wet dreams is to make them come true…"

Surprisingly, there was a long pause as poor naïve Kai tried to figure out what he meant. When he did, he made a face, "Pervert."

"So, you'll do it?" asked Max hopefully

"No!"

"Well, too bad. 'Cause we aren't giving you a choice!" said Ray, and with that, he and Max stood up, dragging Kai with them, ignoring his protests and marched their weary captain back to the campsite.

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**Mei: **_Oh my gosh! I actually finished a chapter of this story! n.n Yay! I got past my block. I even have the rest of this story planned out! n-n There's only two or three more chapters, I think, and then it should be done. And yes – Ray and Max **did** set up Kenny and Emily. Hehe… I'm so evil._

**Tyson: **_Why do I have a feeling that something bad is going to happen because of that?_

**Mei: **_Oh…__ I don't know… ::_evil grin:: - _Thank you to everyone who's reviewed my story so far! (Even though I'm too lazy to answer them right now because I have to go to school in a few minutes -.-;;) But keep reviewing! I love to hear what you think n.n;; Even if you think it sucks n-n_


	4. Chapter Four

**_Mei: _**_Oooooh__ boy… _n.n_ It's been a long time, hasn't it? Hehe… Um… _:dodges rotten mangoes and sour ostrich eggs: _I'm really sorry about the wait guys. Second semester started at my school and there has been so much more homework for this term_

.-;;_ I've been really busy and stuff, and I did have a major writer's block!_

_But I'm past the block now, at least, I hope so _(: _So I can start updating my stories again… I know it's been months and months… _oO;;_ I don't even know if anyone's still reading them _-.-;;_ I'm kinda stuck on my other two chaptered fics, so they might be on hold for now. Sorry! I have a new one planned though _n.n _I'm so bad about finishing fics _x.x

Big thanks to everyone who's reviewed and liked this fic! (: Sadly, I'm too lazy to personally answer reviews anymore… v.v

**DISCLAIMER: **Don't own. Don't sue. Okay?

**WARNING: **Contains yaoi, shounen ai, slash, boys love, homosexuality, whatever you want to call it.

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**Chapter Four

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Kai was seriously beginning to regret having fallen asleep at that picnic table. He was now sitting in Ray and Max's tent – which he was finding rather uncomfortable given the fact that there only seemed to be one sleeping bag (and it really didn't help that Max was sitting on Ray's lap)– listening to the blonde teen talk endlessly about their little plan to set him up with Tyson.

Ray spared the elder blader the occasional sympathetic looks, but Kai found the neko-jin's attention was mostly consumed by combing his hands through Max's hair. Kai had always known the two were together, but he'd never seen them so open about it before. It was making him feel awkward.

"So Kai, what do you think?" asked Max excitedly, "Does that sound like a good idea? I think it does-"

"Breathe Maxie," said Ray fondly.

Kai really didn't want to answer. In fact, he really didn't want to discuss his love life at all, but Max and Ray, who were conveniently sitting right in front of the tent's only exit, didn't seem to be giving him much of a choice.

"It won't work," he said quietly, hoping to get this over with as quick as possible.

Max exchanged a look with Ray, and raised an eyebrow, "Really? Why wouldn't it work?"

Kai really did not like the way Max was grinning, and although he tried to say his next words firmly, his voice wavered and became barely audible, "He likes Hilary." He nearly winced at how he sounded, but even though it hadn't come out with quite the effect he'd intended for, it still got the point across. One would think that Max would've stopped grinning, at least.

But he didn't, "I've already thought about that, Kai," said Max confidently.

This time, even Ray seemed shocked. He flashed Max an urgent look as if to say, 'You have?' and Max glared back at him in reply, 'No, but he doesn't need to know that!' This silent exchange wasn't completely lost on Kai, but the conversation was. It became rather eerie after a good ten minutes had passed without either of the two boys saying a word. If Kai hadn't known any better, he would have thought they'd been communicating telepathically.

Whatever they were doing, they were obviously distracted, and Kai used the opportunity to dart in between them and the door. He unzipped the tent and crawled out.

"Hey!" called Max, he and Ray had finally snapped out of their glaring match.

Kai smirked - he was free! He waved coolly to the couple before turning and walking away.

Max moved to go after their stubborn leader, but Ray held him down, "We don't need Kai to be in on the plan to make it work, Maxie."

The blonde was thoughtful, "Hey, you're right. Chief and Emily weren't in on it…"

"Exactly."

Neither of them said a word about Hilary. They were two excited at having found someone else who was like them. In Max's mind, if he could get Tyson and Kai together, then he and Ray wouldn't have to hide their relationship anymore…

And of course neither of them realized that everyone else already knew.

Kenny was becoming annoyed. Normally he really didn't mind Hilary's company, in fact, he usually found it quite enjoyable. In some ways, she was easier to talk to than Tyson. His best friend had a tendency to interrupt him, and pay little attention to what he was actually saying. But Hilary was a good listener. Whenever he was talking to her, he knew he had her complete undivided attention.

However, there were times when he found her to be very overbearing. Like now. The brunette was sitting beside him, leaning over his shoulder to readthe screen of his lap top. She would persistently point to various things on the screen and ask "What's that, Kenny?" While he normally didn't mind explaining the various beyblade technologies to her, he found her constant questioning to be very irritating.

It could have had something to do with the fact that Kenny didn't actually want to be researching beyblade statistics at the moment. While building and studying the tops was his hobby, everyone needed a break from it once and a while. They had other things to do, like play games, go to school, have a social life…

Or in Kenny's case, e-mail his girlfriend.

It was something he couldn't very well do with Hilary reading everything he was typing.

"So Kenny, what are you doing now?" asked Hilary, for about the tenth time. Kenny scowled beneath his bangs, wondering when she was ever going to get bored of this.

"I told you already," he ground out tolerantly, "I'm researching a new base material for Tyson's Dragoon. It took a beating in his last tournament."

"Doesn't it always?" asked Hilary, rolling her eyes.

"Well, he does push himself hard to win. Tyson is very competitive."

"They all are," grinned Hilary, referring to the boys on the team. She pointed to the screen again, "What's that Chief?"

Kenny could feel his patience wearing thin, "I've already told you!" he snapped, "It's the new base I'm working on for Tyson's beyblade!"

"I see." Hilary didn't say anything after that. Kenny continued typing on his computer, feeling a little guilty. The silence stretched on uncomfortably, only pierced by the repetitive clicking of the keys on Kenny's lap top. Eventually Hilary stood up.

"Well maybe I should go now," she said quietly.

"Alright," said Kenny, he didn't turn around. He felt bad, wondering if he had offended her, but didn't bring it up. He didn't want to start a discussion which would cause her to stay longer.

Hilary bit her lip, although Kenny didn't notice, "Well, bye."

"Bye."

She stood for a few more moments in silence, watching as he typed away at his research. Then she finally turned away and left the tent.

_Finally!_ thought Kenny, feeling a little bad, but brushing it off. He shut down his program and logged onto the internet. Now he could finally talk to Emily.

Kai had always been a rebel. It was pretty blatant for anyone to see, not only because of his attitude, but because of the clothing he wore. Most children born into aristocracy did not go running around in sleeveless shirts, baggy pants, and spiky gelled hair, with blue shark fins painted on their cheeks.

Since Kai was a rebel, it was only natural that he did not like being told what to do. In fact, he loathed it. This was all very logical if one considered that he had been raised by his grandfather, who was about as dominating as men come. One could probably assume that Voltaire Hiwatari had been rather strict with his young grandson.

So obviously, when young Kai, who has been cooped up all his life, following orders from his grandfather, and forced to train and work, gets out into the real world, he's not going to want to listen to anybody anymore, is he? It won't matter if their advice makes any sense, because it's the principle which counts. It doesn't matter if what they're telling him is for his own good - like staying away from a rickety, old, worn-down tree house that would probably break the moment any substantial weight was placed on it. Oh no, Kai's got to be a rebel, so no matter what anyone tells him to do, he's not going to listen to them.

Needless to say, Kai was feeling rather stupid about himself, at present. Not only because he'd been silly enough to climb the tree house, but also because he now found himself incapable of getting down. There was one thing which Kai hated more than being controlled. Being incompetent.

He had to admit, the tree house had had a nice view. When he'd first climbed up, he'd been pretty pleased with himself. It was quiet and peaceful up there. But he got bored of it eventually. Besides, he had to keep an eye on the other boys. They would probably get themselves into trouble, as they were prone to do. Especially Tyson. Not that he cared or anything, it was just that Mr. Dickenson would accuse him of being irresponsible if he let anything happen to them. Yeah… that was it.

He'd considered jumping down. He'd never been afraid of heights. In fact, he rather liked climbing to tall places, such as the rooftops of buildings, and high cliffs. However, he was soon discouraged from the idea when he noticed the overgrowth of branches surrounding him. It didn't look like it would be much fun to land on one of those. There didn't seem to be anywhere clear of branches, he was bound to hit one if tried to make a jump. Besides, it _was_ rather high…

He could always climb down he supposed. He didn't like the idea, as he had never been as good at climbing down as he had at climbing up. But it seemed to be his only option. The ladder was shot, so he had used the branches to make his way up. He'd just have to use them to make his way down.

Maybe Tyson would come along, and Kai would miraculously discover a way to jump down. Then he would, of course, despite the height of the tree, and land magnificently, amazingly, fantastically on his feet, without a single injury. And then Tyson's eyes would go all bug-eyed like they usually did when Kai jumped from some high place or avoided some large falling object without moving. And he would go, "Oh, Kai! You're so strong, and so brave, I love you so much!" and then he would drag Kai off to some secluded corner where they would have a hot, passionate make-out session and-

"Hey Kai!"

Kai blinked, having been rudely interrupted from his fantasy, "What?" he huffed, glaring down at the person who would _dare_ to interrupt his daydream.

It just so happened to be Tyson.

"What are you doing all the way up there?"

Kai turned away, feeling a heated blush creep up his cheeks, and not wanting Tyson to see it. "None of your business," replied the elder teen grumpily.

Tyson's voice sounded concerned, "Are you stuck?"

Kai said nothing, feeling his face heat up even more. This was a lot less glorious than the scene he had been imagining. Personally, he preferred his daydream.

"Kai?" called Tyson. Out of the corner of his eye, Kai could see the younger boy moving closer to the tree, "Do you want me to get you some help?"

"No," replied his captain, stubbornly refusing to look at him. He could imagine that his face was about as red as a ripened tomato, "I can climb down myself. I don't need any help!"

The other boy's voice seemed uncertain, "Okay… Are you sure? Hey, I can catch you if you fall."

Kai fumed, giving an indignant snort, "Save it, Kinomiya. I don't need your help!" he forced himself to stop blushing, and went over to the edge of the tree. He picked the side he figured would be easiest to climb down, and started. He could feel Tyson's anxious eyes on his back, watching his every move. It made him just a little self-conscious. _Concentrate,_ he told himself firmly, _don't do anything stupid. Especially in front of him_. One foot down, and then the other. Make sure the branch was strong enough to support his weight. Then grab another branch…

He was doing well. It made him cocky, and he started to climb faster. He had almost made it to the ground when he lost his footing. Much to his humiliation, he let out a strangled yelp as he slipped, he struggled to grab a branch on his way down, but before he knew it, he was on top of Tyson, having knocked the younger boy over with the force of his fall.

Tyson looked slightly winded, but he caught his breath quickly. He raised a hand almost unconsciously, and brushed a leaf out of Kai's silky hair. "Are you all right?"

Kai blinked owlishly, feeling his cheeks tinge pink again. He turned away angrily, "Of course I'm all right, idiot!" he snapped, "Don't touch me." He glowered at the surrounding forest, feeling quite embarrassed.

"Um… Kai?" asked Tyson after a few minutes of silence.

"What?" came the impatient response.

"… Are you going to get off of me?"

Kai's face reddened, yet again. He'd never known it was possible to blush so much in such a short period of time. He pushed away from Tyson angrily and brushed the dirt off his pants, "Hmph."

"Uh, thanks," said Tyson, also standing up and scratching the back of his head.

Kai glared at him, "I hope you know that this was all your fault."

The blunette gawked, his jaw dropping open, "My fault!" he asked incredulously.

"Hn." Kai turned and stalked off moodily, leaving a very confused Tyson staring after him.

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**_Mei: _**_There we go! Another chappie done. _(: _I think this fic should be done soon. One or two more chappies… (I know I said the same thing last chapter T.T but this time I really mean it!) I'll try to work on my other two chaptered fics this week, but I don't know how much I can get done on them. I'm majorly stuck with SG, and WTSF is kinda iffy -.-;;_

_Anyways, please review! I love reviews, they make me all happy like a kitten with catnip, y'know? Um… maybe I should cut back on the sugar, hehe… __Fla__mes will be used to heat up my cinnamon bread. Gotta love the cinnamon!_


	5. Chapter Five

**Mei: **Oooh, it's been a while… a long while… but, at least I've updated, ne? I actually had this done a couple weeks ago, but I never got around to posting it. Sorry guys! Thanks to everyone who reviewed last chapter, even though I've been taking so long to get things updated!

**Disclaimer:** Don't own. Never did.

**Warning:** Boy x Boy – if you've read this far and _haven't_ realized that, then I'm real worried about you.

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_**Chapter Five**_

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Kai trudged back to the campsite sulkily. He couldn't believe he'd made such a fool of himself in front of Tyson like that. The younger boy must have thought he was a complete fool. It didn't matter. The world champion wasn't going to return his feelings. He liked Hilary. Kai knew this.

As if to confirm his dismal thoughts, Hilary came running towards him panting breathlessly, "Have… you seen… Tyson?" she asked, clutching her side. She'd apparently been running quite a distance, "I really needed to talk to him," he voice seemed kind of choked, but Kai wasn't paying attention.

He was tempted to smack her over the head and tell her that a) He hadn't seen Tyson, and even if he had, he wasn't going to tell her because b) Tyson was _his_ and not hers and that c)… well c) was really nasty, and the thought of saying it kind of brought Kai back to earth.

"Yeah, he was down that way," said Kai softly, pointing in the direction that he had come from. He hoped that Tyson had already left taking an alternate route back to the camp, so that Hilary wouldn't find him.

"Thanks, Kai," said Hilary gratefully. She seemed distracted, upset even, but she waved, giving him an obviously fake smile and continued jogging in the direction Kai had told her to go. He felt a little guilty for thinking such bad thoughts about her. It wasn't her fault that Tyson didn't love him. He sighed and dragged himself back to camp, where he would inevitably face Ray and Max and their persistent matchmaking attempts.

He didn't know why they were bothering to get his hopes up. They knew as well as he did that Tyson was going out with Hilary. All the signs were there, any day now the two of them would be announcing they were an item. Kai didn't want to think about that, it just made him crave an extra six cups of coffee and an overdose of anti-depressants and vitamin pills.

That and he still couldn't believe he'd fallen out of that damned tree house.

As he neared the camp he could smell the unmistakable scent of smoke rising into the air. His head jerked up anxiously, but he realized it was probably just the campfire. The tacky yellow and orange tents came into view and he could see Max doing some sort of crazy stunt on top of the cooler. Kenny was dishing out warnings about all the various ways that Max could injure/maim/kill himself balancing on top of the cooler. Ray was watching from the distance, amusement and worry mixing to form a rather interesting expression on his face.

Kai swept past them without a second thought. He didn't want to talk to them, listen to them, or even be around them at the moment. He pulled open the tent zipper and crawled inside, zipping it shut and flopping down on his sleeping bag wearily. He reached into his bag and pulled out a small medication container, popping it open. Vitamin pills were the answers to all the world's problems… Well, maybe not that extreme, but for now they answered Kai's problems, and that was good enough for him.

All Kai wanted to do right now was to lie in his tent and get some much needed sleep. His afternoon nap had been short, and the events afterwards had only tired him out again. He groaned, and pulled his pillow out of his bag. It would be nice to just relax…

However, it didn't look like that was going to happen, because right then the zipper of his tent began to open itself slowly.

Ray's head popped in, "Hey, Kai."

The older boy gave a low growl, and tossed his pillow angrily at the Chinese boy, "Go away."

Ray was not the least bit fazed, he ducked the pillow easily, and crawling into the tent. Much to Kai's dismay, he was followed closely by Max. Reaching into his bag, Kai pulled out a random shirt, and threw it at Max in one last effort to get the two of them to leave him alone.

It didn't work.

"So, did Tyson catch up to you?" asked Max, grinning widely as he picked up Kai's shirt and chucked it back at him lightly.

Kai glared, stuffing his shirt back into his bag, "How would you know if…" he trailed off, as it suddenly dawned on him, "You sent him after me! Didn't you?"

Max grinned sheepishly and Ray only smirked. Kai glared at them furiously. If only looks could kill…

"We thought you two might hit it off," said Ray easily, enjoying the faint tinge of pink that crept across Kai's cheeks. Max grinned.

"Well, we didn't." Glowering at them was becoming pointless. They were only enjoying this. Sighing, Kai flopped down on the sleeping bag, his head longing for the softness of pillow and cursing him for throwing it at Ray. The floor of the tent was hard, and the sleeping bag did little to change that.

"Aw, that's too bad," said Max, seemingly generally sorry. Ray was less sympathetic.

"What did you say?" he asked accusingly, "Did you drive him off with more of your bad attitude? Have I ever told you that you're a real prick, Kai?"

"I didn't do anything," muttered Kai. He closed his eyes tiredly, wishing that they would just leave him alone, "Besides, Hilary showed up to see her boyfriend." He knew he was exaggerating, but he hoped he would get the point across to them.

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see max and Ray exchange guilty looks. "Well, we tried to stop her from going," said Max earnestly, "We really did."

"Hey, don't worry tough guy." Ray grinned, "We can break couples up just as easily as getting them together, right Maxie?"

Kai let out a long, deep sigh. "Breaking Tyson and Hilary up won't do anything for me." He looked at them both meaningfully, "Tyson will still be straight, and if you break the two of them up, then he'll be miserable..." he paused and added softly, "I don't want to see Tyson miserable."

"Oh Kai!" gushed Max, his blue eyes wide and sparkling, "That was so sweet…"

Ray rolled his eyes, "Since when have _you_ gone so soft? I thought you were a tough guy! I thought you didn't care how other people felt. I thought you only looked out for number one, who cares who gets in your way." He sighed and ran a hand through his dark hair, "Oh man, Kai, love has turned you into silly putty, hasn't it?"

Kai growled, and clenched his fists around his sleeping bag. The neko-jin was pushing it, _really_ pushing it. Maybe he'd forgotten that Kai made up most of the training schedule.

Max punched Ray playfully in the arm, "_I_ think it's cute," he said seriously, giving Ray a hard stare. The Chinese teenager flushed pink slightly, before giving in.

"Fine, Kai. Have it your way. I just think you shouldn't give up, that's all."

With that, the two of them began to crawl back out of the tent, leaving Kai alone with his thoughts at last.

* * *

Tyson had picked himself up and started brushing some of the leaves off of his shirt. He didn't dare try and start with the dirt on his pants and back. Let Hilary yell at him for it, he didn't care. At least he'd broken Kai's fall, the thought made him giddy. 

Although, that was completely silly if one thought about it – having a boy who was taller and obviously heavier than him was fall on him and crush the air out of his lungs. Something like that wasn't supposed to make one feel "giddy".

But still, Kai had been _touching _him. It sent a thrill up Tyson's spine just thinking about it. He'd never been so close to the elusive team captain before.

Then again, Kai had stalked off on him huffily. The odds were likely that his captain was angry with him. That made Tyson's spirits sink a little. Kai would probably take his frustration on him out the way he usually did – by making Tyson train even harder than normal. The Japanese teen groaned at the thought.

He began walking towards the camp.

"Tyson!" the teenaged boy's head snapped up at the familiar voice, Hilary was jogging towards him, looking rather worse for wear, "Tyson," she panted as she caught up with him. There was something wrong with her.

"Hey, Hil," he said cheerfully, maybe overly-cheerful, he had to admit he was still a still giddy. His smile faded as he saw the look on her face. "What's up?"

The girl's eyes were wide and watery, as if she'd been crying. "Kenny…" she said softly, hesitating, "I guess it doesn't matter. I shouldn't complain about it, I mean, it's silly."

"No, tell me what's wrong," said Tyson firmly. Although he was no expert with the whole 'comforting' thing, he still hated to see his friends upset.

"Kenny… he…" Hilary bit her lip unhappily, "He has a girlfriend," she said finally.

Tyson's eyes widened, "He can't have a girlfriend," he said, trying to reason with her. Maybe she'd just taken something the Chief had said the wrong way, "I mean, he would have told us, right? We would have seen her…" he trailed off noticing the look on Hilary's face. Tears were leaking out of her eyes, and trailing down her cheeks.

He wasn't sure what to do. "No, it's an internet girlfriend, see, I was talking to him, and he kept trying to get me to leave – so, I know when I'm not wanted, I left. But then, I realized I'd forgotten the ribbon, for my hair, and I came back in, and he was talking to her," she said all of this very fast, as if it would somehow make things better if Tyson wasn't able to understand her.

After a few moments of trying process what Hilary had said, Tyson finally answered carefully, "But how do you know it was actually a girlfriend?" his skepticism faltered slightly when he saw that she was outright crying now.

"W-would you say – If it wasn't your – You d-didn't see what he wrote…" she was now struggling vainly to keep herself from bursting into uncontrolled sobs. Tyson was feeling extremely awkward. He had never been around a crying person before, not since when his mother died. When that had happened, he had been doing most of the crying rather than the comforting. Suddenly, before Tyson could react, Hilary had thrown her arms around him, sobbing pitifully. Tyson did not know what else to do, so he tentatively hugged her back.

He still couldn't fathom how Kenny could have had a girlfriend without him or any of the others knowing. How was it possible to keep such a thing secret? Of course, if it was an internet girl, then he could easily have never told any of them. However, wouldn't there have been signs? Some clues to show he had been in love?

He had a sudden, sick feeling in his stomach. What if _Kai_ had a girlfriend? If Kenny could hide his feelings of being in love, then surely it would be no trouble for Kai. He hadn't been dubbed 'The Ice King' for nothing. Kai was a master at disguising his emotions. Tyson couldn't honestly say that there had ever been a time when he had known what Kai was really thinking.

The thought made his stomach churn jealously.

But he wouldn't think of that. Instead, he rather awkwardly tried to comfort Hilary, feeling more and more uncomfortable, and wondering if what she said was true about Kenny… and trying not to think if it was true about Kai.

* * *

He didn't know why he had left, or what had convinced him to go. It was probably Ray. Stupid Ray. He was going to have to make him run extra laps, do extra sit-ups, practice extra pop can drills, lift extra weights and whatever other cruel punishment he could come up with under the guise of "training". 

"Hello, my child."

Kai nearly jumped three feet into the air. The old woman, their camp guide, was standing in front of him, her trademark creepy smile plastered all over her wrinkled face. He scowled, "What do you want?"

The little old lady seemed completely unfazed. She leaned in close to him, eyeing him critically, "I see you have not changed…"

"What are you talking about?" Kai was really wishing she would just go away. What was it with people today? Why couldn't they just leave him alone?

"You are still uptight and tense. You are wound up like a ball of yarn," she nodded sagely before adding, "You are not relaxed."

Rolling his eyes, Kai turned to walk away, but the old woman snatched his shoulder and spun him around with amazing strength, "You must learn," she rasped, leaning in uncomfortably close to him. Kai instinctively leaned away. "You must learn to spread your wings! _Become a butterfly._"

Kai stared at her disbelievingly, "Become a _what_?"

"A butterfly," she repeated, her voice a low hiss, "You must spread your wings, like a butterfly, and fly away. Right now, you are still a caterpillar. You are all wrapped up in your little cocoon. You know nothing else."

If Kai hadn't thought this lady was crazy before, he sure did now. "I'm not a butterfly," he told her firmly, backing away. Her hand only gripped his shoulder tighter as he did this, making him shift his weight uneasily.

"No, you're not," she said, leaning in again, "Not _yet_. You must _become_ the butterfly. Only then will you truly be free."

_Right. A butterfly. She's on crack._ Not knowing what else to do, Kai just gave a very pained nod, and hoped that she would be satisfied and leave him alone. However, that was not the case. Without warning, the old lady leaned close, pressing her nose against his chest. And then, before Kai could do anything, she _sniffed_ him.

Kai was speechless.

"I see you have been in the tree house," she said gravely.

He didn't know how she could possibly know that, or how she would have figured that out by sniffing him, of all things. No, she must have seen him climb it, or fall from it, or something to that effect. That was it.

"You smell just like tree house," continued the woman, "I told you not to go into the tree house."

How could anyone possibly smell like a tree house? Maybe if she had said "pine" or "trees" or "mould" it would have made sense, but not tree house.

"You must _never_ go back to that tree house," she said, her hoarse, eerie voice raising and making him jump.

"Right, whatever," he muttered, as she finally let go of his shoulder. He backed away as far as he possibly could without risking bumping into anything, before he turned around and headed towards the trees again.

Trying to get the crazy lady's words out of his head and focus on the goal, he barely noticed the voices ahead of him. He didn't care who it was, it didn't matter right now. All that mattered was that he was going to do it. He was going to go up to Tyson, Hilary or no Hilary, and tell him… Tell him what? _I love you..? _He couldn't say that, could he?

He could hear a girl sobbing not too far away, and then there was another voice, a boy's voice. It spoke in hushed, gentler tones, intended to soothe, comfort. Its familiarity was disconcerting. He knew he'd heard that voice before. Hesitantly, Kai peered around the corner, into the clearing.

It made his heart wrench in two.

There was Tyson, hugging Hilary, who was plainly sobbing into his chest. Kai had no idea why she was this way, nor did he care even slightly. He felt something twist unpleasantly in his stomach, and he thought that he might be sick. All thoughts of telling Tyson his feelings were obliterated from his mind, and he turned and made his way miserably back to the camp, trying to think of anything else. Beyblades, training, even that crazy old lady would have done just fine, but he couldn't stop thinking about what he had just seen.

* * *

**Mei: **There, I think I sufficiently screwed things up for them in this chapter:grins: I love being evil. Hehe. Only one more chapter to go, hopefully. So, please review guys! I love your reviews, I really, really do. :) 


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